Boston native who moved to Texas pays it forward to women who helped her during crisis

Amanda Pensack says she was desperate for food and water until two good Samaritans in Texas came to her rescue.

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  • Is There a New Episode of Bill Maher’s ‘Real Time’ Airing This Week?

    After spending much of 2020 taping his weekly HBO show from his home due to the coronavirus, Bill Maher returned to his L.A.-based studio last September — though with a limited studio audience and live guests who were kept at least six feet apart from one another. That same set-up continues for the 19th season of “Real Time,” which returned in mid-January and saw Maher hilariously booting Donald Trump from the White House. In a recent episode, the comedian even introduced viewers to a new segment that gives an inside look into the Republican party’s newly elected senators (more on that below). There is a new episode of “Real Time” this week on February 26. Maher returns at 10 p.m. and will speak with guests including former Fox News host Megyn Kelly, Democratic Sen. John Tester, who represents Montana, and Vox co-founder Ezra Klein. Also Read: Bill Maher: It Makes Perfect Sense That Christians Are Into QAnon (Video) In one of his first “New Rules” segments of 2021 on Jan. 21, Maher introduced a new class of Republican senators after sending off Trump, former VP Mike Pence and other members of Trump’s cabinet who left to make way for the Biden administration. And just in case you thought Maher has softened his opinion of Republicans now that Trump has left the White House, the segment was pointedly called “Hello, Douchebags.” “Republican restock douchebags with the efficiency of an Amazon warehouse,” Maher joked as he started the bit. “They churn out new crazy like the Hallmark Channel makes Christmas movies. So I thought it might be prudent moving forward if we took a moment at the beginning of the year to get to know the up-and-comers — the douchebags to keep an eye on. The new, fresh-faced, hate-for-profit, truth-bending opportunists that you’ll be cursing out for years to come.” In that spirit, Maher noted that Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, who expressed support for the seditious Capitol riot Trump instigated on Jan. 6, is “the far-right JFK with a little dash of KKK.” Maher also joked, “Washington insider says he’s among 2021’s most punchable faces.” Also Read: Bill Maher Could Barely Believe Marjorie Taylor Greene's Insane 'Jewish Space Lasers' Thing Is Real Other targets on Maher’s list included Rep. Madison Cawthorn, Sen. Tommy Tuberville and Rep. Lauren Boebert. He also ripped into Sen. Marjorie Taylor Green, calling her “the congresswoman who makes most people say, ‘How is she not a teacher from Florida who f—s her students?’ I don’t know, but holy s–t, is this lady crazy? She does not listen to lobbyists and special interests. No, she listens to microwaves.” Maher continued to book high-profile political guests in 2020, and recent episodes of “Real Time” have featured Al Franken, Adam Schiff, Bernie Sanders, Al Gore and Bill de Blasio. As is customary for Maher on “Real Time,” he doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to commentating on and satirizing policy decisions — in his last show of 2020, Maher ripped into both President Trump and Rudy Giuliani and their bungled attempts to convince the public that the 2020 election was somehow falsified or inaccurate. Maher joked that when a judge says “order in the court,” Giuliani typically responds with, “a Tanqueray and tonic!” Read original story Is There a New Episode of Bill Maher’s ‘Real Time’ Airing This Week? At TheWrap

  • See Every Single New and Former ‘The Crown’ Character vs. Their Real-Life Counterpart

    Princess Diana's wedding gown = 😍😍From Cosmopolitan

  • Things You Never Knew About the Royal Family's Unusual Eating Habits

    The royal family's chef spilled all of his secrets.

  • Hyten wants a greater ‘focus’ with cruise missile defense

    To defend the homeland against cruise missiles, the strategy should be to focus on the location of enemy platforms, Gen. John Hyten, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said.

  • Giannis Antetokounmpo with a dunk vs the Minnesota Timberwolves

    Giannis Antetokounmpo (Milwaukee Bucks) with a dunk vs the Minnesota Timberwolves, 02/23/2021

  • Serena Williams Looks Stunning In This Insanely Glamorous Red Robe

    GOAT and supermodel.

  • Breaking news: The mighty Dyson Cyclone V10 is on sale for the lowest price we've seen

    HSN just launched an epic sale — Discovery Days — and it's jam-packed with deep discounts on top brands.

  • Patriots WR Julian Edelman offers tweet of support to Tiger Woods

    The Patriots wide receiver expressed his support for the golfer on social media.

  • Do The Right Thing: How Come You Ain't Got No Brothers Up On The Wall?

    Lee's darkly humorous story of racial tensions in a Brooklyn neighborhood. Created much controversy at time of release!

  • Clippers rout Wizards 135-116, snap Washington's win streak

    Kawhi Leonard scored 32 points and the Los Angeles Clippers routed Washington 135-116 on Tuesday night, snapping the Wizards’ season-high five-game winning streak. Paul George had 30 points before exiting with 7:19 remaining because of a minutes restriction after a toe injury. The Clippers had four bench players in double figures as their reserves outscored the Wizards’ subs 58-29.

  • New Zealand Government Forces Central Bank to Include Housing In Rate Setting

    (Bloomberg) -- New Zealand’s government will require the central bank to take account of rampant house prices when it sets interest rates, a change that may restrict its ability to run loose monetary policy.The Reserve Bank’s remit will be amended so that the bank considers “the impact on housing when making monetary and financial policy decisions,” Finance Minister Grant Robertson said in a statement Thursday in Wellington. The New Zealand dollar jumped to its highest since 2017 as investors ramped up bets on higher interest rates.The government is under political pressure to cool an overheating housing market, which has been fueled by record-low borrowing costs after the RBNZ responded to the coronavirus pandemic by slashing its cash rate and embarking on quantitative easing. Governor Adrian Orr pushed back against Robertson’s proposal when it was first made last year, saying that forcing the bank to consider house prices when setting rates could lead to below-target employment and inflation.“The more objectives you’ve got, the more complicated it can be to meet all those objectives,” said Nick Tuffley, chief economist at ASB Bank in Auckland. “Inflation and employment is what they will focus on, but they have to think harder about how their decisions impact on the housing market.”The kiwi dollar jumped about a third of a U.S. cent to 74.55 cents, its highest since August 2017. Bond yields and swap rates also rose on news of the changed remit, which comes into force on March 1. Investors are now pricing a 30% chance of a rate hike in November, even though the RBNZ yesterday sought to damp bets on tighter policy and said it could cut rates further if needed.Robertson ‘In Charge’“The market is saying no more rate cuts, so push the kiwi higher,” said Jason Wong, currency strategist at Bank of New Zealand in Wellington. “The RBNZ has shown its independence by saying ‘we don’t like this measure,’ but they are going to have to live with it because the finance minister’s in charge.”Robertson said today that the RBNZ’s objectives and mandate remain the same, which is to maintain price stability, support full employment and promote a sound and stable financial system.But a change to the Monetary Policy Committee’s remit will force it to “assess the effect of its monetary policy decisions on the government’s policy.” A clause has been added stating that the government’s policy “is to support more sustainable house prices, including by dampening investor demand for existing housing stock, which would improve affordability for first-home buyers.”“The committee retains autonomy over whether and how its decisions take account of potential housing consequences, but it will need to explain regularly how it has sought to assess the impacts on housing outcomes,” Robertson said.Robertson also issued a direction under the Reserve Bank Act requiring the bank to have regard to government policy on housing in relation to its financial policy functions.In a statement Thursday, the RBNZ said it “welcomes the direction it has received today from the Minister of Finance.” It said changes to financial stability policy are “in tune with our recent advice.”The bank acknowledged the change to its monetary policy remit but noted its targets “remain unchanged.”“The adjustments increase the focus on understanding and communicating the impact of the bank’s decisions on house price sustainability,” Orr said in the statement. “We have a long-standing commitment to transparency about our policy actions and approaches, and this will continue.”Soaring house prices have raised concerns that first-time buyers are being locked out of the market. Much of the surge has been attributed to investors taking advantage of low interest rates.The RBNZ, which predicts prices will rise 22% in the year through June, is reinstating mortgage lending restrictions and will tighten them further for investors from May 1.Orr in December recommended that the bank be required to address the issue of rapid house-price inflation via financial policy, and requested it be allowed to add debt-to-income ratios to its macro-prudential toolkit.Robertson said today he has asked the RBNZ to provide advice on interest-only mortgages and debt-to-income ratios. He would want the latter to apply only to investors, he said.“Today’s announcement is just the first step as the government considers broader advice about how to cool the housing market,” Robertson said. “We know the rapid increases we have seen in recent months are not sustainable, which has meant many first-home buyers are struggling to access the market. We’ll be making further announcements in the coming weeks on other policy responses.”(Includes chart)For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2021 Bloomberg L.P.

  • Apple To Hike Dividends, Tim Cook Says

    Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL) shareholders have voted to re-elect the company’s entire board of directors and also approved the 2020 executive compensation program, CNBC reported Tuesday. The company also plans to increase the dividend. What Happened: This year’s shareholder meeting took place in a virtual format on Tuesday. Apple CEO Tim Cook’s 2021 compensation will include a long-term equity award, the first since he was promoted to the top role in 2011, as per CNBC. The equity package was announced in September 2020. See also: How To Buy Apple Stock In a proxy filing, Apple’s board noted that since Cook’s promotion to the role of CEO in August 2011 through September 2020, the company’s market capitalization increased by more than $1.5 trillion and total shareholder return, including dividends, was 867%. Apple shareholders reportedly voted down a proposal that would require the company to reduce executive pay compared with median employee salary across the company. Cook said that Apple planned to raise its dividend, according to the CNBC report. The iPhone maker had declared a dividend of 20.5 cents per share in the holiday quarter. The CEO also reportedly noted that Apple employees have been working from home since March and have adapted well to remote work. See Also: Tim Cook Says Apple Will Preserve Its Work Culture But Integrate COVID-19 Transformations Regarding Apple’s acquisition strategy, Cook said Apple acquires a company every month or so and has acquired about 100 companies over the last six years. Why It Matters: Apple has thrived despite the pandemic and reported revenues of $111.4 billion in the recent first quarter, up 21% year-over-year. The tech giant is the biggest listed public company in the U.S. with a market capitalization of $2.1 trillion. Price Movement: Apple shares closed 0.1 percent lower at $125.86 on Tuesday. Read Next: Apple Says Hardware Chief Will Work On 'New Project' Under Tim Cook — But Wouldn't Tell Us What It Is See more from BenzingaClick here for options trades from BenzingaWhy Tesla Took Off Standard Range Model Y From Its OfferingsDC Comics To Bring Its Universe As Podcasts On Spotify© 2021 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  • Report: Panthers ‘have gotten some calls’ on Teddy Bridgewater, talks stalled

    Rapoport also says the Panthers have gotten calls about Bridgewater but those talks are now "stuck," as is everything else on the quarterback landscape.

  • Wall Street ends sharply lower, tech selloff weighs as bond yields climb

    The Dow and the S&P 500 notched their biggest daily decline since late January. The Treasury note yield rose above S&P 500 dividend yield, wiping out the stock market yield's strong advantage. Apple Inc, Amazon.com Inc, Microsoft Corp, Alphabet Inc, Facebook Inc and Netflix Inc dropped between 1.2% to 3.6%.

  • In Pennsylvania, Republican rift over Trump imperils party’s election chances

    C. Arnold McClure chairs the Republican Party in Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania - deep in Trump country - and wants to punish fellow conservatives who have turned against the former president. McClure is among those pushing the state party to censure Pennsylvania's Republican senator, Pat Toomey, for voting this month to convict Donald Trump, at his second impeachment trial, of inciting the U.S. Capitol riots. McClure will apply the same standard to any Republican candidate in upcoming elections who seeks support in his rural county: Those who have defended Trump will pass "our first litmus test," he said.

  • Zendaya Corrects Gendered Question About the Quality She Likes Most in a Man

    The actress made the clarification during an interview for Vanity Fair's annual "Hollywood Issue" while explaining that she looks for "kindness" in "a person"

  • The $15 minimum wage is struck from the Democratic stimulus plan

    The Senate parliamentarian ruled on Thursday evening to remove the wage bump from the reconciliation package.

  • How a woman lives in a 500-square-foot apartment with 2 roommates, a dog, 100 houseplants - and zero clutter

    Maximalist Bruna Mello lives in a sunny, vibrant tiny apartment in South London, and she doesn't let the small space keep her from collecting things.

  • McConnell says he would vote for Trump again days after accusing him of being 'practically and morally responsible' for the insurrection

    McConnell told Fox News' Bret Baier that he would "absolutely" back Trump if he won the 2024 Republican nomination.

  • A bride wore a sparkly wedding dress with transparent cutouts and removable sleeves to her destination wedding

    Bijon Vaughn wore a Galia Lahav dress to her 2020 wedding. Sheer cutouts, removable sleeves, and an intricate bodice made the gown one-of-a-kind.